ROH Showdown in the Sun Review

I guess I'm going to try and review both days in this one post.  I should mention that I've had nothing but trouble in watching this iPPV.  First, my Day 1 Part 2 feed cut off before the main event and right in the middle of Steen/Generico.  Now, I got halfway through Day 2 and Steen/Edwards keeps screwing up and I've had a ton of connection issues.  At this point, I don't think I will be able to catch the rest of it.  I've heard good things about the Elgin/Richards match and was looking forward to seeing it.  Sorry for these problems to all my readers, as I had no problems with the DGUSA show last night.

DAY 1

Shane Haste/Mikey Nichols v. The Briscoes-Proving Ground Match-Pretty hot tag match to start this show off.  Haste and Nichols hit a nice moonsault elbow double team combo.  Mark Briscoe was in trouble but he flipped out of a backdrop and made the tag to Jay.  However, Haste and Nichols nailed a double team DDT that stunned the Briscoes.  The Briscoes were able to bounce back and hit the Doomsday Device for the win.  Pretty solid and fun match and they gave Haste and Nichols a lot of offense.  ** and a quarter

Jim Cornette is the in the ring to introduce the NWA Champ Adam Pierce.  Pierce talked about his recent match with Adam Cole.  Cornette said he won the match with a questionable low blow and a piledriver, which is illegal in ROH.  Pierce did put over Cole as the future of ROH and he said he was good but not great.  Cole came out and said he thinks he can beat Pierce and Pierce says he wants to fight now.  Cornette was hesitant to make the match but eventually did and it wasn't for the NWA Title.  Pierce carries himself well but he doesn't feel like he's ready to step into the next level in wrestling.  Well, at least he's not fighting Vance Nevada tonight!

Adam Pierce v. Adam Cole-Cole hit a suicide dive and he got a lot of offense in.  Pierce put him over well and this match was booked like Pierce is the veteran heel who is trying to teach the rookie Cole a lesson.  Pierce was begging off at one point but the crowd told Cole not to listen to him.  Pierce ended up hitting a chokeslam as Cole ran towards him.  In the end, Pierce went for the piledriver which the ref blocked, then Cole reversed it into a pin.  They both shook hands afterwards and Pierce raised Cole's hand.  **


Kenny King/Rhett Titus (All Night Express) v. The Young Bucks-Dual Duel Part 1-Tornado Rules-This ended up being a better match than I was expecting, especially from the Bucks.  They come across as major douche bags, comparable to Heath Slater, but better.  Titus and King hit double somersault planchas.  King was in trouble, got a hope spot, but got shutdown.  He eventually made the tag to Titus who cleaned house.  The finish was double 450 splashes for the All Nighters and Titus got the pin.  Titus got attacked with a chair by Nick Jackson but King made the save.  ** and a half

Tommaso Ciampa came out with Prince Nana and RD Evans.  Evans said that his law office received an injunction that stated if the TV Title was not returned within 24 hours, the entire Embassy would be suspended.  He said Ciampa was happy to return it but he did not bring it with him and that Ernesto Osiris was on his way to get the belt and bring it to Night 2.

Jay Lethal v. Kyle O'Reilly-TV Title-This was a really good match and both guys looked good.  Lethal carries himself well, especially in terms of workrate.  Ciampa came out to watch the match.  They went to technical wrestling to start but Lethal came alive.  He hit a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker into a Russian leg sweep into a ground submission.  O'Reilly bounced back and hit a guillitine choke that Lethal tried to fight off.  Lethal ended up hitting the Lethal Combination and both guys were down.  Lethal hit a handspring backelbow and O'Reilly hit a big back superplex.  The problem was that Kyle started wasting time and pandering to the crowd which led to Lethal hitting the Lethal Injection for the pin.  Ciampa and Lethal had a staredown and Lethal invited him in the ring but Ciampa left.  Pretty solid match and I figured it had to be given that it was a 15-minute time limit match with Jay Lethal!  *** and a half

Shelton Benjamin/Charlie Haas (Wrestling's Greatest Tag Team) v. Caprice Coleman/Cedric Alexander-Coleman and Alexander wanted to shake hands but Haas told them to fuck off and attacked them.  Alexander missed a dive and Coleman ended up working from the bottom.  Haas hit a sick back suplex on one of the ring barriers outside, I believe, on Coleman.  Please correct me if I'm wrong on that.  Coleman tried for a springboard crossbody but Haas caught him and threw him down.  Coleman hit a double dropkick and went to the wrong corner to make the tag but he got it soon after.  Alexander began cleaning house.  Coleman came back in and hit a leaping rana on Haas, who was on the top rope.  Shelton did his leaping top rope belly-to-belly superplex for the win on Alexander though.  Haas and Benjamin are great heels for ROH.  ***

Lance Storm v. Mike Bennett w/Maria-I expected a lot from this match, perhaps too much but it was still fun.  Storm was in great shape and Bennett has some charisma and a little size.  Lance hit a great dropkick but Bennett did a dropkick of his own a couple minutes later.  Storm hit a springboard clothesline but Bennett hit his Box Office Smash afterwards for a two-count.  Bennett went for a half-crab but Lance hit a superkick for a near fall and he started working on the leg.  Lance hit his half-crab but Mike got out of it with the ropes.  Storm had him on top for a suplex but Maria grabbed Bennett's leg to block it.  Mike hit the Box Office Smash from the top but only got a two and then hit a TKO for the win.  The TKO finish was a little anti-climactic coming so soon after the Box Office Smash and maybe they should've just finished with that.  They shook hands after the match.  ** and a quarter

Kevin Steen v. El Generico-Last Man Standing-I've been real impressed with El Generico for these shows.  I hadn't seen much of his work until now but he can play a great traditional babyface or an intense, serious babyface, like in this match.  You could tell this feud was personal.  In the beginning, Generico went under the ring and grabbed some extra ring ropes for weapons.  Steen hit a powerbomb onto the apron the outside floor that looked sick.  They started to battle on the stage in front of the fans and Generico hit a Michinoku Driver on the wood floor.  Steen tried to escape the stage but Generico ran at him and hit a huge somersault plancha.  Then, Generico hit a great tornado DDT while running across the steel ring barriers.  Generico set up a table but Steen went after him and hit his own somersault plancha through the table.  They battled back in the ring, planting each other onto folded out chairs.  Steen tried to go to the top rope but got sent down through the timekeeper's table at ringside and Generico exploded.  Eventually, they both went for dueling chairs and Steen got the advantage and went to hit Generico with his chair.  Jimmy Jacobs ran in and grabbed the chair from him and Generico hit a suplex on a chair to Steen.  Jacobs then handed Generico the chair to hit Steen but he double crossed him and nailed him with a spike.  Jacobs then handed Steen the chair and he hit Generico for the win.  This beat the hell out of any of those John Cena Last Man Standing matches.  This match really felt like they were trying to kill each other out there and Steen kept kicking out of everything.  I didn't like the finish though with Jacobs though.  *** and three quarters

Roderick Strong v. Eddie Edwards v. Davey Richards-ROH Title-I didn't really enjoy this match as it felt like three guys just doing moves, one after the other, with no absorption periods in between at all.  They all went back and forth for most of the match with a lot of striking and slugfests.  Davey hit both guys in two different submissions at the same time.  Edwards was the first guy to be eliminated by a small package from Strong.  The match got a little better when it was no longer a Triple Threat match but not by much.  Davey hit a double foot stomp on Strong and then nailed a headkick and a pin for the win.  Michael Elgin came in and powerbombed Davey afterwards and Truth Martini talked about how Elgin was going to win the ROH belt on Day 2.  * and three quarters

DAY 2

Jimmy Jacobs came out and said that he being good wasn't good and that he was now evil.  El Generico ran down after him with a ref and a match began.

Jimmy Jacobs v. El Generico-Jacobs is pretty dull to watch but thankfully Generico came through and looked good.  At one point, Jacobs pulled out his spike but missed Generico and it nailed the turnbuckle pad instead.  Generico had the advantage but went to use the spike and Jacobs rolled him up for the win.  Pretty dull match here even with the fiery Generico.  * and a quarter

Cedric Alexander w/Caprice Coleman v. Tommaso Ciampa w/Osiris, Nana, and RD Evans-Evans was on commentary.  Alexander hit a full-nelson face first suplex on Ciampa and he hit a sick suplex into a barrier on the outside.  Ciampa got the advantage and positioned Alexander in the corner with his head outside the ropes on the ground.  He then went out onto the apron and delivered two running kicks and put Alexander back in and pinned him.  Ciampa has some intensity and a good look but he lacks charisma.  * and a half

TJ Perkins v. Fire Ant-ROH v. Chikara-This is my first time seeing someone from Chikara and I was impressed by what I saw.  This match was cut off by a power outage but it was mostly lucha, high flying stuff.  From what I saw, it looked good.  ** and a half

Mike Bennett and Maria are out and he's talking about how he beat Lance Storm on Day 1.  He said him and Maria were going to go down the South Beach and celebrate the idea that he is better than the best.  Then, they made out heavily.

The Briscoes v. Wrestling's Greatest Tag Team-ROH Tag Titles-This match failed to deliver for me and I thought it was going to be really good.  Benjamin and Haas were not nearly as good as Day 1 but they did get a lot of heat.  At one point, on the outside, Shelton rammed Mark's head into the ring barrier a couple times, which had to hurt a lot.  Mark was on the bottom but ended up making a hot tag to Jay who hit a plancha on Shelton and a crossbody on Haas.  Jay ended up hitting a headscissors into a pin on Benjamin for the win.

I could not get the rest of the show to connect.  If I can get it to work, I'll review the rest of the show.  Overall, comparing these shows to the DGUSA show from last night, these shows were way better, especially Day 1.  Kevin Kelly and Nigel McGuinness were great on commentary.  One complaint I do have is that the show kept cutting away from the action at the wrong moments.  Also, I do think that the suicide dives and somersault planchas were overused.  The problem is that so many people do high flying spots that they all get lost in the shuffle.  It would be nice to slow things down a little so that way these spots would look more special.  I would like to buy more ROH shows in the future but I'm hoping I won't have as many problems as I did with these shows.  On the technical side of things, the DGUSA iPPV was loads better as I had know problems at all except for some minor sound issues.

I'll be back tomorrow night for WrestleMania!  Take care.
@stevesgraps
stevesgraps@yahoo.com

Dragon Gate USA-Open The Ultimate Gate PPV Review 3-30-2012

I just got done watching the $1.99 PPV from DGUSA and it was worth it for the price point.  Here's the review...

AR Fox v. Rich Swann-Decent opener with a lot of spots.  Swann hit a somersault dropkick that looked impressive.  Fox had a great spinning fisherman's buster and a flip headbutt in the corner that looked fantastic.  Lots of heat for this match and it was well deserved with all the moves they showcased.  I loved the springboard reverse somersault cannonball to the outside by Fox, and it was probably my favorite move of the night.  However, I'm not sure the name of the move is correct!  Fox won by running and grabbing Swann on the top rope and hitting an SAT moonsault splash off the top.  ** and a half

CIMA/Ricochet interview as CIMA was injured last night at the DGUSA show and they have to vacate their tag titles.  Chuck Taylor and Johnny Gargano come out and Taylor says that they should just give them the belts since they were supposed to fight CIMA and Ricochet.  Gargano stops him and says he doesn't want to win them that way.  Masato Yoshino comes out and wants to be Ricochet's partner for tonight and Ricochet accepts.

Caleb Konley/Scott Reed (The Scene) v. Bobby Fish/Tommy Dreamer-I absolutely hated the entrance of The Scene with Larry Dallas and three chicks (one of whom, I believe, was Shelly Martinez) doing all sorts of sexual movements and innuendos.  The line was crossed in terms of taste and this came across really bad.  This match was an average tag match with nothing spectacular.  Dreamer did his old Francine piledriver spot on Steffi (one of the chicks) and he also did his old ECW spanking spot on Shelly.  Fish's offense looked dull and lacked fire.  I was really wanting to like him as he carried himself like a young Dean Malenko but I couldn't get into him.  He won with his Fishhook leg submission.  * and a quarter

Sami Callihan v. BxB Hulk-Calihan played the disrespectful heel all night long, starting with this match.  He dumped Hulk on his head in the beginning that looked crazy.  Hulk had some big kicks and Christina Von Eerie came out to watch the match.  Sami hit a suicide dive on Hulk and then sent him flying into the first row.  Hulk messed up a springboard but it was covered up nicely by the announcing.  Von Eerie got up on the apron with Hulk's wine, drank some, and spit it into Hulk's face.  Sami hit a flip suplex and won and he celebrated with Von Eerie.  ** and a quarter

Sami cut a promo on Sabu, his opponent for tomorrow's show.  This led to Sabu coming out and a big brawl ensued that resulted in a match.
Jon Davis/Sabu v. Arik Cannon/Pinkie Sanchez-This was a terribly average brawl with tables that you'd expect from Sabu.  I couldn't stand Sanchez as he kept gyrating during the match and his nickname was The Sexual Spidermonkey.  He doesn't look all that hot with his frame and his hair but oh well.  Davis hit a spinning powerbomb on Cannon from his back for the win.  Calihan then came back and attacked Sabu.  *

Masaaki Mochisuki v. Akira Tozawa-This was a pretty decent match and they worked hard out there.  Tozawa hit a suicide dive and immediately tried for a second but was cut off.  Right after that, he tried for a third and nailed it.  Tozawa hit some Kobashi chops in the corner on Mochisuki.  Tozawa later hit a big German Suplex off the top followed by another German on the mat.  They battled back and forth towards the end but Mochisuki hit a springboard kick off the top similar to Cody Rhodes but better, for the win.  Von Eerie, who was in Tozawa's corner attacked Mochisuki after the match.  This match felt like a battle and I enjoyed and it probably my match of the night.  ***

Johnny Vandal v. Samurai Del Sol-I think it was at this point that they stopped showing intro graphics for each wrestler.  This was short but fun as Samurai was hitting some flying moves.  The finish was Samurai springboarding onto Vandal's shoulders and hitting a reverse rana.  **

Low-Ki v. PAC-I really expected this match to be totally amazing but I felt it lacked something.  They battled back and forth for the entire match.  They mat wrestled a lot in the beginning.  PAC hit a moonsault too the outside off the top-rope and Ki barely made it back inside afterwards.  Ki went for the Warrior's Way but PAC stopped it and hit a top-rope rana.  However, he missed a twisting splash and Ki then hit the Warrior's Way for the win.  Ki looked very solid and PAC was good, as far as workrate.  He lacks charisma, or at least, in this match he did.  Ki called out the rosters of DGUSA and Evolve afterwards.  ***


Johnny Gargano/Chuck Taylor v. Ricochet/Masato Yoshino-Gargano didn't look too bad and he carries himself well for an indy wrestler.  Yoshino was amazing every time he got in there and very fast.  I really want to see more of him.  A couple of moonsault hits and misses and we saw a big flipping somersault senton by Ricochet on Gargano.  Lots of moves in this match.  Ricochet hit a 630 splash off the top on Gargano, which was very impressive.  There were some problems between Taylor and Gargano as Taylor broke up a pin by Gargano.  Yoshino hit a weird submission, that honestly I'm not sure what to call it, for the win.  New tag champs are Ricochet and Yoshino.  CIMA got on the mic after the match and wanted to shake hands with Gargano.  Gargano shook his hand but Taylor ended up attacking both guys from behind and leaving.  Taylor comes across like a big indy guy and I'm not into him much.  ** and three quarters

Overall, for the price, I don't regret buying this event although I don't think I'd buy another one at full price.  Most might disagree with me but that's my feelings.  The announcing wasn't too bad until Arik Cannon joined in the last couple matches.  He made some bad references and sounded horrible and even swore a little which comes across bad for a high profile indy company to do.  Gargano has potential and I'd look forward to seeing more of his matches.  Low-Ki looked very solid, as noted, and a lot of the Japanese guys carried themselves well.  I'd would've liked to have seen CIMA as I've never seen any of his stuff yet.  The production values were solid for an indy PPV and there were no issues with sound or from the feed and everything ran smoothly.  Also, there was way too much of Sami Callihan.  To me, he's not very good and his promos are horrible sounding.  I don't know why they were giving him such a big push on this show.

WrestleMania 28 Predictions

I figure now that the go-home RAW is done and the SD show on Friday is mostly recap stuff, now is the time to do predictions for Sunday.

Cody Rhodes v. The Big Show for the IC Title-Cody really desperately needs this win as they've really only jobbed him out in the past.  The WWE has a big problem with their mid-card heels being taken seriously.  Dolph Ziggler and Cody Rhodes seem to be always thrown to the wolves by jobbing to main event guys in tag matches and singles matches.  Because of that, no one gives a damn about guys like Rhodes, etc.  For example, look at the Royal Rumble where guys like Cody and The Miz got no reaction despite being pushed hard in that match.  This is a big spotlight match for Cody and it would be great to see him get some credibility by beating Show.  Sadly, going by what I just said about the WWE's booking mistakes recently with their heels, I'm predicting Show to win this one.  One other side note that sways me in that direction is the fact that they've been playing up the idea that Show has never really had a defining Wrestlemania moment and he's almost the anti-Undertaker.  This makes me think he will finally get his moment and win the belt.

Team Teddy v. Team Johnny 12-man Tag-I'm already sick of this program and I just want this match to be over.  John Lauranaitis is certainly the stronger of the two characters and he has the most heat.  I'm predicting Ace to win and become GM for both shows.  I hope they keep Teddy around for something at least.

Kelly Kelly/Maria Menounos v. Beth Phoenix/Eve-Maria is injured so don't expect any bumps from her.  She's also the face celebrity here so I expect her team to win in a short match.

Kane v. Randy Orton-The simple fact that Kane has already put over Cena in a one-off feud leads me to believe the same thing will happen with Orton.

Daniel Bryan v. Sheamus for the World Heavyweight Title-Bryan has had a great run as champ and has went from getting no reaction to getting good heat and that's saying something for his talents.  Sheamus is pretty over too and the WWE always books towards face champions.  This has been the case since the WWWF and I don't see it changing now.  Sheamus will win it but I hope they don't forget about Bryan and he can keep his heat.  I would not be surprised to see Bryan win a major title again in the future as the WWE knows he has the talent since he stepped up during this run and got over.

CM Punk v. Chris Jericho for the WWE Title-I don't see the WWE stopping this feud after Mania and for that reason I think Jericho will win.  Should be a pretty decent match and we'll see how it plays out.

Undertaker v. Triple H-I'm going with Taker to win and keep the streak alive.  If Taker plans on coming back again for next year's Mania, it makes complete sense to keep the streak alive.  His streak has gotten bigger and bigger every year and financially, it would be stupid to end it now unless this were Taker's guaranteed last match.  Should be another good match and I wouldn't be surprised to see blood too.  This match has had the best build-up going in to Mania and has a great story connected to it especially with HBK as the ref.  There are so many different stories that can be told in this match and it should be great.

The Rock v. John Cena-There is no question that Cena will get booed out of the building no matter what he does.  Every time I think about this match and the outcome, I think of Lance Storm's theory on sending the fans home happy.  Sure, putting Cena over might seem like good business but it won't send the fans home happy.  The Rock getting the win would be a great story to tell and the majority of people watching would like it and be satisfied with the outcome.  Thus, they might be more willing to give the WWE more business in the future in case another big match rolls along.  With that being said, I do think Cena will win it but they will need to try and get him some approval.  Cena will win clean and maybe a heel will come out and attack The Rock (or vice-versa) and Cena will save him and they'll shake afterwards.  Doing this might turn him in Miami enough so that the people are satisfied with the outcome.  Of course, who would be the heel and why would he be running in to attack someone?  Basically, if Cena does go over, he will get booed completely unless The Rock gives his approval of Cena towards the fans, in some way.  If he wins and this doesn't happen, the viewers might not go home happy, so to speak.  If the WWE is booking towards a rematch, it makes a lot of sense for The Rock to go over though.  We just don't know right now when or if The Rock will be back anytime soon.

The card is stacked and hopefully it will be a good show.  Last year, it seemed like the only good match was Taker/HHH!  I expect to do a small write-up for the show and for some of the other shows over the weekend.  I'm not sure if I'm going to order the Dragon Gate $1.99 show or the ROH shows though.  Either way I'll have write-ups and reviews for whatever I watch.

March 26, 2012 RAW TV

This is the go-home show for WrestleMania so you'd think it would have to be loaded from top to bottom.  Yea, that wasn't the case.  This was a pretty forgettable and bad show.  Here goes nothing...

Randy Orton/Sheamus v. Daniel Bryan/Kane-Cole was putting over Bryan as having beaten guys like Henry and Orton, which sounded good.  Bryan was running from Sheamus every time they were in the ring together.  Sheamus hit a good top rope shoulder block.  Later, Sheamus was knocked outside and Bryan hit a flying knee from the apron.  Orton got in on a hot tag and nailed his powerslam and DDT on Bryan but Orton was slowed down afterwards.  Kane got a top rope clothesline on Orton but Orton ended up making the tag to Sheamus who cleaned house on Bryan.  As Sheamus was going for his kick AJ came in between him and Sheamus missed the kick.  Kane, from the outside, chokeslammed Sheamus and Bryan covered him for the win.  * and three quarters.

In the king of the intros segment, Michael Cole is in the ring with a Team Johnny shirt on as he introduces Lauranaitis.  Ace intros Vickie as his flag bearer for WM and Otunga for his match.  Cole is Team Johnny's commentator and Booker is Team Teddy's commentator, by the way.  Booker intros Teddy who then intros Santino who comes out with Hornswoggle.  Yes, there's a match after all of this, so stay tuned.

Santino v. David Otunga-Nothing to this match as Sanitno hit the cobra on Otunga after Otunga had Teddy's flag and went to hit Hornie but it missed.  Johnny and Teddy go at it as Santino went for the cobra.  However, The Miz ran out and hit the Skullcrushing Finale and saved Ace, who then made him a member of Team Johnny.  This segment was utterly excruciating and probably the worst part of the whole show.  I'm already completely exhausted on this 12-man tag match at Mania.  *

They showed a video recapping the Taker/HHH program.

Eve v. Kelly Kelly-Very short match, as expected I guess.  Kelly hit a big tilt-a-whirl headscissors on Eve that looked a million times better than AJ's La Mistica from Smackdown.  Eve went for a top-rope moonsault but missed it and Kelly rolled her up for the win.  * and a quarter

Christian v. CM Punk-10PM slot-This is Christian's return match from his injury and he had no reaction at all.  Jericho was on the tron and talked about Punk's sister and dad and then said that his parents got married after Punk's birth and that makes Punk a literal bastard.  Christian tried to use this distraction to his advantage but it didn't work.  They both fought outside for a second until Punk gained control and started destroying Christian.  He hit the GTS on the steps and put in the Anaconda Vise as the officials came out to stop him.  He kept yelling "this is you Jericho."  The match was thrown out I guess.  Decent stuff here but nothing new for the feud and the match at Mania.  Nothing special.

Brodus Clay v. Curt Hawkins-Usual Brodus match as Hawkins got a little offense but got shut down and Clay hit the splash for the win.  They have to find something new for Clay as this stuff is getting old.  It's the same thing every time we see him.  The reaction for him was soft.  *

Big Show v. Primo-Total squash on Primo as Show hit a chokeslam for the win in a quick match.  Afterwards, Rosa came in to distract Show as Epico tried to attack Show but he just got chokeslammed too.  Cody came out and insulted Show and said he will win and still be champion after Mania.  *

Lord Tensai video aired.

The Bellas are in the back arguing about the 12-man tag at Mania when Ryder interrupts and accidently insults them.  Eve comes from behind and says she forgives him for last week.  She wants him to stay at her hotel in Miami for Mania and Ryder is excited for that.  Throwaway segment.

Josh Matthews interviews Punk who says that his family is off limits with Jericho.  He can insult him all he wants but not his family.  He said he's not a bastard but he is the best wrestler in the world.

Great Khali v. Mark Henry-Khali got some chops going and went for his choke but Henry hit the World's Strongest Slam for the win.  Ace threw Teddy in with Henry who held him for a few minutes from leaving.  Lauranaitis called out his team to block Teddy's team from making the save.  By the way, Christian was injured and won't be in the match at Mania and Drew Macintyre is his replacement.  Teddy's team tries to save him but they get blocked.  Kofi got threw but ate a Slam from Henry.  Henry went to attack Teddy but Booker T made the save for him.  Teddy thanked him and asked him to join his team and Booker accepted and hit a spin-a-rooinie.

The Rock comes out and said everyone was asking him when he would come back but he always said he didn't know.  He finally knew when at last year's Mania and at the RAW after Mania when Cena challenged him.  Finally he will return on Sunday at Mania and there's only one man he could face and it's John Cena.  Cena comes out and tries to save the show.  He knows he'll get booed at Mania in Miami.  Despite all the criticism and trash talking towards him, he still comes to work happy with a smile on his face.  He rises above all of that and still wins and he's going to win at Mania.  He came across like a total douche here.  He said he's always been here and been proud and he won't allow The Rock to take his life away from him.  With a fiery flare, he said he has to win on Sunday.  The Rock interrupts by saying he knows it is important at Mania.  He said he was the first opponent Cena has faced that the people know he can't overcome and never before has anyone been able to say that.  At Wrestlemania, The Rock wants to be able to say he has beaten Hulk Hogan, Stone Cold, and Cena and he is the greatest of all-time.  Plain and simple, The Rock just doesn't like Cena and he is going to give him the ass kicking of a lifetime.  Cena responded by saying he will have his hand raised in victory over The Rock's battered carcass at Mania and they stared each other down for the finale.  Yup, they never touched, not once.

This was one of the worst RAWs in recent memory.  The only decent stuff was the opening tag match, the Punk stuff, and most of the final segment.  I wish they would have touched at the end and I'm sure a lot of other feel the same way.  Plain and simple, this was a bad show.  In my head, my original prediction for Mania buys was between 1 million and 1.1 million but now I'm starting to wonder how big of a difference The Rock will actually make for buys.  The build-up for his match has been dull and uninteresting, for the most part.

March 23, 2012 Smackdown TV Report

Nine days from WrestleMania, and it's Smackdown tonight.  So here we go...

Daniel Bryan and AJ are out to great heat.  DB says he will still be champ after Mania and he tells AJ to tell everyone what it's like to be in love with the World Heavyweight Champion.  First, AJ says that she has a match tonight but Bryan interrupts her and tells her to stick to the subject at hand.  She really seems enthusiastic about her match tonight.  She sums up her relationship by saying it's heaven and that DB's lips are very soft.  Sometimes, they even spoon!  Yes, she said that.  She also says that Danny's body is a temple and he makes her feel safe.  However, Bryan reminds her not to call him Danny in public.  Bryan interrupts her and whispers into her ear as if telling her to say something.  She is reluctant at first but eventually she says that he is a great lover.  This is all to very good heat for the two.  She ends by saying DB will make Sheamus tap at Mania and he will be on his way to becoming the greatest of all-time.  Sheamus comes out and says he threw up a little listening to them both.  He calls DB a sniveling coward as the crowd chants Danny because Sheamus called him that.  Sheamus actually prefers to call him Danny Boy, which the crowd starts chanting.  He says he will beat DB at Mania.  Great segment here even though Sheamus comes across as being a little one-dimensional.  Every time I see him in this build he seems to say the same things in his interviews.  He is over though and the WWE likes face champions and books towards them.  He looks strong for Mania.

R-Truth v. Mark Henry-This was meant to make Henry look good and powerful.  Of course, when he loses on RAW everything gets undermined.  Truth tries to fight Henry but gets cut off by a headbutt and gets hit with a couple clubbing blows to the back.  Truth tries fighting back but gets shut down and thrown outside.  Henry said he was taking out the trash.  He grinds Truth's face into the steps and sends him back in.  He says he is calling the shots but he misses a big elbow.  Then, Truth hits a dropkick and a Miz-like short DDT but only gets a two-count.  Truth goes up top and tries for a crossbody but Mark catches him and hits the World's Strongest Slam for the win.  On the way out, he tells a fan off-camera that they could be next.  I love Mark's ad-libbed lines that he does!  * and a quarter.

They played the Yokozuna Hall of Fame video and then a recap of Zack Ryder's rally to get onto Team Teddy from RAW.  This led to Santino, Ryder, Kofi, and Aksana with Teddy in his office.  Ryder pleads with Teddy to let him on the team but Teddy says he does not want the distractions that Ryder would bring.  I guess he was talking about Eve.  Ryder says he has a surprise that will surely help him change his mind.  He brings in Hornswaggle with a Team Teddy flag and says he will be Teddy's mascot for Mania.  Teddy loves this idea but he still says no to Ryder.  Ryder then brings out The Greak Khali in Ryder gear and he does the Woo Woo Woo You Know It thing and Teddy changes his mind.  Khali and Ryder are both on the team.  Teddy must be on that sauce if that is all it takes to change his mind.  Maybe he shouldn't be running Smackdown if he can be swayed that easily.  He also has a lousy team filled with losers.

AJ w/Daniel Bryan v. Brie Bella-Nice cameltoe on the Bellas.  Does me saying that ruin my credibility, what little I have?  This was a bad match that started with some headlocks by Brie.  AJ ends up hitting a standing elbow but Nikki comes onto the apron and clotheslines her when the ref wasn't looking.  AJ eventually tries for a roll-up but gets a two-count and another clothesline in return.  AJ got thrown into the ropes and reversed it into La Mistica which looked beyond awful.  Plus, she runs the ropes about as good as Kelly Kelly.  Brie doesn't submit as Nikki got up on the apron again trying to distract AJ.  Brie ran to hit AJ but AJ ducked and she hit Nikki instead.  AJ then hit a roll-up for the win and Bryan came in to celebrate.  He nearly left the ring without AJ until he remembered to come to her.  This segment wasn't over yet though as Nikki got in the ring said that her and her sister disagree on who they think will win between Teddy and Johnny.  She is on Team Teddy and starts a Team Teddy cheer.  This sucked too.  She was playing heavy heel for the match, more so than her sister and yet she is the one siding with Team Teddy.  *

Vickie is out to introduce Jack Swagger, whose facials while doing pushups look goofy as hell. 
Jack Swagger v. Zack Ryder-Zack versus Jack here and this was a better outing for Ryder than Monday's match.  He came out with Hornswaggle and his flag which got annoying real quick.  That Mania match has so much going on it'll be a trainwreck.  I can imagine Hornie running around the whole time with that flag, which will get old fast.  Swagger got control and started mat wrestling with Ryder but Zack hit a roll-up, got a two-count, and gained control.  Swagger shoved him into a corner and nailed a powerslam for a two-count.  Then, he pounds Ryder in the corner and goes after a wrist lock.  He uses the wrist lock to throw him around a little and puts in a key lock.  Ryder chants are going off and Ryder begins his comeback with a big mule kick in the corner.  He hits a clothesline, facebuster, and a running forearm in the corner to set-up the Broski Boot.  He only gets a two after that but has good heat.  He goes for the Ruff Ryder but it gets countered into a powerbomb into the corner and then a Swagger Bomb.  Hornswaggle starts chasing Vickie who jumps onto the apron distracting Swagger who runs into a Rough Ryder for the win.  * and three quarters.

Recap Cody/Show stuff from RAW and Cody's punches still look like shit.  Striker is in the back and hunts down Cody for his thoughts.  He enjoyed Monday and Show's biggest embarrassment is yet to come at Mania.  It will be when he loses to Cody this year on April Fools Day.  He says he has a plane to catch and leaves.

Big Show v. Kane-They start by going back and forth with shots and moves.  Kane hits a clothesline and goes for a second attempt but misses.  Kane ran outside but Show chases after him.  Kane was pinned against the steel post as Show attempts a clothesline which misses.  Kane gets him back inside and nails a dropkick and nearfall.  He puts Show in a chinlock which gets reversed and they both go for clotheslines that cancel each other out.  Show begins a comeback with punches, some headbutts, and a shoulder tackle but he misses a clothesline and Kane counters with a DDT.  Kane goes up top after a nearfall but gets caught in a chokeslam.  Cody runs out from the crowd and nails Show for a DQ finish.  He runs right back out and Show chases him but can't catch him.  Out comes Orton who hits an RKO on Kane and he stands tall.  This stuff was slightly more interesting than Monday's build for these two matches.  * and three quarters, decent, quick big man match.

Heath Slater v. Brodus Clay-Cameron's ass is amazing!  Slater is outside mocking Brodus' dancing and he looks goofy.  He is a pretty decent jobber and I hope they keep him around for that.  Slater gets shoved down and Brodus goes for an elbow.  He tries for a back body drop but Slater counters and hits a dropkick and he goes on offense.  This doesn't last long and eventually Brodus hits his headbutt to the stomach, a running knee, a suplex variation, and the splash for the finish.  *

Eve and Ryder are in the back talking and Zack ends up insulting her on accident and she cancels their dinner for later and walks away.  She smiles as she's walking. 

Recap of HBK/HHH/Taker stuff from RAW.

Christian is out for commentary. 
Great Khali v. Dolph Ziggler-Ace, Otunga, Teddy, and Aksana are all out for this one.  Ziggler tries to avoid Khali and then tries hitting him but gets shut down.  Dolph runs out but gets thrown back in from the apron.  Khali goes for some chops in the corners but Ziggler ends up hitting a dropkick to the knee to shut him down afterwards.  He beats up up on the ground and hooks in a front face lock.  Bad idea.  Khali throws him out of it, hits a clothesline but misses a chop and Ziggler nails a sleeper and Lauranaitis calls for the bell.  Teddy says the match isn't over and Dolph has until ten to get back in the ring and restart or he will lose.  He does not return and loses until Kofi and Santino run down and throw him back in so Khali can beat on him.  Teddy, Khali, Kofi, and Santino all dance.  *

CM Punk/Sheamus v. Daniel Bryan/The Miz-Cole thinks DB should run Smackdown.  Sheamus begins with DB but DB tags out right away.  Sheamus throws some headlocks and throws on Miz.  The Miz tries for a hip toss but this was blocked into a clothesline and a tag to Punk.  Punk nails an elbow off the top and gets a nearfall.  Punk chant going and a tag to Sheamus who slingshots in to nail The Miz.  Sheamus misses a backdrop and Miz hits his backbreaker that was countered.  Sheamus tosses in DB who ran away and this leads to Miz getting the upperhand as he throws Sheamus out.  DB hit his dropkick outside which leads to a commercial.  Afterwards, Miz has a chinlock on Sheamus who powers out and tags in Punk.  Punk hits his usual stuff starting with a springboard clothesline.  He went after Bryan and Miz hit his DDT for a nearfall.  Bryan comes in and is on the attack with kneedrops as Danny Boy chants begin.  Miz eventually comes in after some offense and hits a high knee and throws in a cravat.  Punk battles out and goes for the GTS that Miz countered into a backbreaker that was then countered into Punk's high spinning kick to the head.  Punk makes the tag as did Bryan and Sheamus runs right through him.  He did his clubbing forearms and then hit a powerslam.  Bryan gets a tag and runs but Sheamus chases after him.  The Miz tries to attack but Sheamus hits the Brogue Kick for the win.  ** and a quarter

Pretty boring show with the only highlights being the opening stuff with Bryan and AJ.  The Kane/Show match was fun and I almost gave that ** if it weren't for the finish.  The main was decent but not as good as the six-man from last week.  Thanks folks, feel free to comment.

March 19, 2011 RAW

You figure we got two weeks of RAW left so the WWE has to start hammering home every program on the card and they did that with this show but it was not all that amazing.

The show started with Punk coming out to address Jericho from last week, a recap of which was shown.  Punk says that Jericho isn't there and his dad being an alcoholic is not his business to share.  He knows Jericho wants to get into his heads and play mind games to gain an advantage for their match at Mania.  Punk says that if there is a monster/demon inside of him he will let it loose on Jericho at WM.  His dad overcame his demons and he is proud of him.  Jericho is on the tron via satelite and he apologizes because he was out of line.  He won't talk about his father again on television but his sister is not offlimits.  He reveals that Punk's sister has drug problems and that there's a pattern within Punk's family.  He says Punk will drink and that it's his destiny to do so.  Jericho knows that Punk's dad and sister overcame their problems but Punk won't be able to overcome losing at WM.  Punk responds by saying he will beat the shit out of Jericho at Mania.  I liked this segment and I loved Jericho's line about a pattern developing.  It makes total sense and Jericho is trying to use that against Punk to gain an advantage and it seems to be working.


Kane v. The Big Show-Cody comes out in the beginning and Cole reveals Rhodes persuaded him to show a highlight package of Show's Mania moments.  This was a wacky reel of his mistakes accented with zany sounds effects whenever something bad happened to Show.  I guess Cody is trying to get under his skin but this did nothing to make you care about their match at all.  Of course, it won't move any buys no matter what they do.  Show starts by pushing Kane into the corner and they fight.  They both went for chokeslams but neither got them.  Show hit a diving spear and went to the top but Cody distracted him enough so that Kane could slam him off for the win.  Cody was also shadowboxing with boxing gloves on outside the ring like Floyd Mayweather and he looked funny!  Cody came in from behind Show and hit the Disaster Kick and then went outside and got some handcuffs.  He tied his hands together, grabbed the gloves, and pounded on Show with weak looking punches.  He nailed him some more with punches and kicks and he left.  The officials cut Show free and Show looked up at Cody with an angry look and he couldn't get up without stumbling.  Not an amazing way to build up a match but it's only the IC Title match at WM so no big deal I guess.  Match was *.


After commercial, they showed a replay of the Cody angle.  Santino v. David Otunga-John Laurinaitis and Teddy Long were out with each guy for this match.  There was a Santino chant as they both did a posedown.  Santino had makeup on his abs to match Otunga's abs definition.  Santino ended up pulling a muscle and Otunga attacked him to start the match.  Nothing spectacular here but Santino hit his haymakers and then his split into a hip toss and then went for the cobra.  Ace threw his phone into the ring but Santino stomped on it.  When he turned around, Otunga hit his spinebuster for the finish.  Laurinaitis did the trombones dance afterwards but Teddy Long got in his face and slapped him and ran away like a heel.  *


Recap video for HHH accepting the Taker match for WM.  This is the big program they're hyping for this show.


The Rock is live, in front of the Rocky statue in Philly and he's talking about great Mania moments.  He references Hogan and Warrior and then says how he lost to Austin at Wresltemania XV.  He says he got better after that loss and went on to beat Austin in their WM re-match and how he beat Hogan at WM18.  Now, if he can beat Cena at WMXXVIII, he will be able to solidify himself as the greatest off all-time.  This really put over the match I thought.  He said he's coming to the arena to send a message to Cena tonight.  Good segment here and it was almost like it was Rock's version of Cena's empty arena promo from a couple weeks back.


Daniel Bryan v. Zack Ryder-It's funny that Ryder was injured so heavily a couple months ago by Kane and he just comes back and forgets the whole thing.  Must have been traumatic for him!  Earlier tonight, Ryder was shown having a Ryder's Rally in the parking lot in Philly.  He was doing this in order to get a spot on Team Teddy for Mania.  AJ and Bryan kiss before the match, which was just a match to put over DB.  Bryan was in control until Ryder hit his comeback and nailed the Broski Boot.  He went for the Ruff Ryder but DB countered it into the LaBelle Lock for the win.  Ryder looked like a jobber here.  * and a quarter


It's the 10 PM quarter hour for John Cena v. Mark Henry-Cena got mostly boos for this one.  Cena started by trying to outpower Henry but that didn't work.  Henry worked on top almost the whole match and Cena got no offense in until his comeback.  Henry pummeled him inside and outside the ring until he went for a splash in the corner.  Cena moved and hit a back suplex on Henry and then hit the 5 Knuckle Shuffle but he was still selling the offense from Henry from before.  He went for the AA but Henry stopped that and then he went for a crossbody but was caught.  Henry tried for the World's Strongest Slam but Cena flipped behind him and hit the AA for the win.  The Rock came out, ran down to the ring, and hit the Rock Bottom on Henry, stared down Cena, and left.  I guess that was his message but this felt like they were building up to last year's Survivor Series more than Mania.  This whole program has been dull.  * and three quarters

Recap of HBK announcing he is the ref for the Taker/HHH match at Mania.  Another video was shown from Extra as Maria Menounos was interviewing Kelly Kelly but Eve and Beth interrupted.  Eve's acting was absolutely awful here but no surprise, right?  Beth looked much tougher as she got in Maria's face and went to go hit her but security stopped her.  Maria was challenged for a match at Mania and she accepted while smiling and acting like it was nothing.  This was awful but again, no surprise. 


After commercial, The Miz was in the ring and he talked about how King Kong Bundy main evented WrestleMania II but by WrestleMania III he was just wrestling Hillbilly Jim and how this was the biggest dropoff for a wrestler between Manias until now.  He said how he main evented last year's Mania and now he isn't even on the card for this year and he won't stand for it.  He wants on Team Johnny at WM and will wrestle anyone to get there.  He's desperate it seems.  Out comes Sheamus.


Sheamus v. The Miz-The Miz got more offense than any other loser tonight besides Mark Henry but he still looked bad.  He started by trying to attack Sheamus but that didn't work and Sheamus nailed his Irish Hammer/Polish Hammer move.  Later, Miz went for his crappy DDT but Sheamus countered it with his rolling suplex from a fireman's carry position.  Miz regained control but couldn't put him away and he locked in a chinlock.  Sheamus hit his comeback to some chants for him, no heat for The Miz though this whole match.  Sheamus went for the Brogue Kick and he missed but he tried again and won.  * and a quarter


Recap of Jericho/Punk from earlier.  Josh Matthews is out on the old-school interview podium to the side of the ramp like in the 80's and 90's.  He introduces Randy Orton and Orton reminds everyone that last summer he beat Kane and they shook hands as Kane showed his human side.  However, now Kane is nothing close to being human and Orton will beat him at Mania.  Very short.


Vickie comes out to intro Swagger and Dolph as two new members of Team Johnny.


Dolph Ziggler/Jack Swagger v. Kofi Kingston/R-Truth-Kofi begins with the advantage and some good offense.  He was zooming around and nailed a crossbody from the top.  Ziggler and Swagger worked together though to isolate Kofi in their corner for the majority of this match.  It had good heat on Kofi to make the tag to Truth.  Dolph hit a neckbreaker but Kofi countered into a backslide for a two-count.  Swagger was doing push-ups on Kofi's back at one point.  Swagger lifted Kofi out of the corner but Kofi countered with a DDT and made the tag.  Truth bolted in and hit his comeback and Swagger got thrown out of the ring.  Kofi then came down, ran at him, and jumped off the steps onto Jack.  In the ring, Swagger hit the Namedropper on Truth for the win.  Afterwards, Vickie and Aksana brawled.  Like that makes you care about the tag match at Mania any more.  * and three quarters


Video was shown from the MSG show over the weekend of HHH doing Taker's moves to Dolph in his match.  He hit the tombstone on him and pinned him like Taker does in his matches.


HBK is out and he said Taker was in the same position he was in two years ago at Mania.  Taker was at his end.  Taker came out and starts talking but was interrupted by HHH.  He mentions that there have been twenty-four Hell in the Cell matches and that Taker and HHH have been in nineteen of them.  This is the match that HHH thrives in and excels in.  The whole world will see the end of the Undertaker at Mania.  Taker asks HHH if he is willing to put his family, his career, and everything encompassing his life on the line to end Taker.  HHH says yes if it means ending Taker.  They stare each other down, Taker leaves but stops.  He talked about how people were saying HBK was better than HHH.  Taker said it was true, that Shawn is better than HHH, and he leaves.  HBK is smiling at HHH and the show ends.  Nothing new here but the last couple weeks have been good enough for this program so far. 


This whole episode was pretty uneventful as far as advancing Mania storylines.  Nothing really new was shown that hasn't been already done in the last couple weeks.  I'm a little disappointed that Cena has been booked like a chump this whole time for this match.  He never gives me the impression that this is nothing more than another match he has to win.  The Rock provokes him so much and he never really responds.  I thought for sure they'd finally touch next week but to be honest, I wouldn't be surprised if they still didn't.  We'll see, I guess.  They only have one more week to squeek some buys in and tonight's episode didn't do that.


Workrate average: * and a quarter

March 12, 2012 RAW-Attitudinal

This episode in Cleveland advertised both a John Cena rap-off and a Rock concert, so here we go...

The King is out in the ring and he intros Cena who is dressed like it's 2004 with a Cavs jersey and his chain with a lock on it.  He got a ton of heat.  He namedropped Lebron leaving Cleveland and said he's going to give Rock a cleveland steamer.  If only that were the finish for Mania.  He also says he is going to put his nuts in Rock's face.  Cena was entertaining here but he was only out for a couple minutes and his rap didn't really turn a ton of people as he still got a more heat than anything by the end.

Vickie is out right away to good heat as she intros Dolph, the showoff.
Dolph Ziggler v. Sheamus-Ziggler really makes Sheamus' power moves look wonderful.  Dolph began by antagonizing Sheamus a bit but Sheamus shut him down with some throws and takedowns.  Sheamus went to pound him on the ropes but Dolph ran out.  After a commercial, Sheamus hit a clothesline and Dolph made him look great.  They end up outside but Vickie distracts Sheamus so Dolph can crawl under the ring, come out, get behind Sheamus, and dropkick him.  He also threw Sheamus into the announce table.  Sheamus made it into the ring before the ten-count but Dolph stayed on the attack with a chinlock with a body scissors.  This set-up Josh Matthews in a sky box with Daniel Bryan and AJ.  He asked Bryan about him telling AJ to shut up on Smackdown and Bryan was upset.  He said AJ loved him, the feeling was mutual, and the interview was over.  He comes across as very defensive and nervous which Cole played up.  Back to the match, Sheamus hits a comeback and goes for the Celtic Cross. This was countered and Dolph ran towards Sheamus but was thrown up and down face first as a counter by Sheamus.  Dolph got to the top rope though, jumped off, and was caught by Sheamus.  Dolph then countered Sheamus with a crucifix but only got a two.  Sheamus held on to Dolph, picked him up, and slammed him like an AA.  Dolph was in the corner later and Sheamus went after but ran shoulder first into the post.  This prompted Dolph to hit the Namedropper but Sheamus kicked out.  Out of nowhere, Sheamus hit the Brogue Kick for the win.  Pretty decent stuff especially with Dolph bumping left and right for Sheamus.  I can't think of anyone who has made Sheamus look better.  ***

Santino v. Mark Henry/David Otunga-This was supposed to be a mixed tag with Aksana but Johnny Ace came out and changed it to a handicap match involving Mark Henry who is now a member of Team Lauranaitis at Mania.  Teddy came out to protect Aksana which distracted Santino so Otunga could nail him.  Teddy pushed Lauranaitis and the cobra came out.  Henry stopped that quickly and hit the World's Strongest Slam for the finish.  Otunga and Henry continue to beat down Santino until Kofi and later, Truth come out to help but get beaten down too.  *

Eve and Zack Ryder are backstage and Ryder is confused as to why Eve hasn't been responding to him on Facebook, Twitter, etc.  Eve says she just wants to be friends with benefits and she sets up dinner with Ryder later.  You know what that means.  Before this, they showed a video from Extra of Maria Menounos interviewing The Bellas and Alicia Fox.  Beth Phoenix approaches Eve and commends her on how well she manipulates men.  Of course, she has only really manipulated Ryder.  Beth is jealous and mad that she wasn't asked to be on Extra and she is pissed at Mari Menounos.  Eve doesn't care and blows off Beth.

The Miz is with Lauranaitis and James Roday from Psych on USA Wednesdays at 9PM (I think).  Miz asks about being at Mania and Ace books him against Punk later and if he wins he can join Team Laruaitis.  Roday was announced as guest announcer for the match and delivered some jokes, most I didn't get.  He came across as way better of an actor than anyone else on the show so far.

Jinder Mahal v. Brodus Clay-Brodus is back in a short match ending in a splash.  Clay seemed less charming than his other appearances.  *

Shawn Michaels is out.  He says that no one in the locker room ever called him a loser or a failure but Taker was excluded because he has been absent and calls him out.  HBK says that they have both always respected one another.  Taker should not have talked behind his back but actually told him how he felt to his face.  Taker says HBK needs to get rid of his insecurities.  HBK then says that Taker feels he still needs to prove himself by keeping the streak going and he knows that HHH can beat him.  Taker can accept the outcome as long as it is fair and isn't tainted by any outside parties involved in the match.  The outcome must be pure or there will be hell to pay.  HBK says the ironic thing is that the guy whose career was ended by Taker could turn Taker into the loser and the failure and he could end the streak afterall.  Taker will win and the streak will continue.  HBK pats him on the shoulder and leaves.  The doubt is in Taker's mind with this great segment.  Great storytelling towards the end.  HHH comes out and gives Taker a suck it and leaves.

James Roday is out and does the worst indy-rific announce job ever.  He dragged out everything and sounded obnoxious.  I imagined him doing every match on every episode!
CM Punk v. The Miz-Neither got a huge reaction.  Nothing match really as Miz didn't get much going.  They went to commercial early and afterwards The Miz had an abdominal stretch locked on.  Punk reversed that though and went into his comeback moves.  Miz hit his DDT though but he missed off the top.  This led to a GTS attempt but it was countered into a Skull Crushing Finale attempt which was countered into the Anaconda Vise for the win.  * and a half.

Jericho is on the tron and says he has figured out why Punk is straight edge.  It is because Punk's father was a drunk and Punk fears he will turn out like him.  Jericho says he will make Punk drink at Mania and he will hit rock bottom.  He will realize his nightmares and finally drink after he loses the WWE title.  Pretty hard stuff as Punk was visibly upset and walked off slowly.  No real reaction to this from the crowd though.

There was a really corny Otunga ad for his lawyer services that mocked other real lawyer ads and it gave out his Twitter account if you need help.

Randy Orton v. Jack Swagger-Swagger got a jobber intro and Orton was constantly looking behind him for Kane.  They had a fireman's carry duel but Orton won out and hit a dropkick too.  Swagger was thrown out and Orton tossed him around everywhere.  The idea is that Orton was more angry because of Kane and more aggressive.  His facials seemed like regular Orton.  After a commercial, Swagger was in control and started working on Orton's leg.  Swagger missed the Swagger Bomb but went for the ankle lock that was countered.  They fought towards the corner and Orton dragged up Swagger and hit a superplex.  He hit his usual stuff like the DDT and powerslam and nailed an RKO for the win.  Afterwards, flames went off and red lighting went on and that's it.  Pretty average match.  * and a half.

The Rock was out for his concert and he said that the crowd set a record for Cleveland as the sell-out record for the WWE at The Q was set tonight.  He called Cena a Marky-Mark wanna-be and said that for the last eight years he has looked like the love child of Vanilla Ice and a Tele-Tubbie.  They showed a graphic of this in case some people didn't understand.  Then came the concert with The Rock reading his lyrics from a sheet in front of him.  The theme was that Cleveland rocks and he sang different verses each one ending with that phrase.  He sang about Cena, Cena and Eve, and made fun of Cena's mom.  He even made fun of grown men who are Cena fans.  Finally, he put the guitar down and sang his own rendition of Queen's We Will Rock You only with lyrics about how Cena sucks.  It was like karaoke night as the lyrics were on the tron and The Rock almost messed up a couple times.  Cena never came out and the show ended.  This was all entertaining but I'm not sure this stuff is going to make anyone buy Mania for this match. 

Average workrate rating:  * and a half

Thanks guys, leave some comments or something on how I'm doing.

WWE Superstars March 8, 2012

This was one good episode of Superstars and I couldn't recommend it more.  I'm starting to give ratings for the matches and here's my scale: 1-5 stars total, 3 stars and above are usually for being pretty watcheable, anything lower are not memorable, and 4 stars and above are the sweet spot.  Basically, really good matches that everyone should see, here ya go...

Justin Gabriel v. Heath Slater-These two really worked hard, despite being green still.  First, I like Heath's song.  Second, I know he isn't very good but he's kinda like the cheesy douche who you just want to hit in the face.  I think he'd make a good heel mid-card job guy for the faces.  He's really corny but very hateable.  Good heat from the start and for the show for that matter.  We saw a greco-roman knuckle lock in this into a wrist lock.  Later, Gabriel hit a running Slater with a dropkick to the knee which sent Heath onto his face.  Justin was on top most of the match and worked the arm of Slater a lot.  At one point though, Heath caught Gabriel out of a suplex and crotched him on the top rope.  Slater stayed on Gabriel until he missed a kick and soon came Gabriel's comeback, which included a rolling elbow.  Nothing memorable from the comeback.  Justin hit a springboard moonsault spot on at one point but later Heath hit a nasty neckbreaker out of a top-rope Gabriel.  Gabriel looked like he went down real fast before Slater.  The finish was the 450 by Gabriel.  Like I said, these guys worked hard.  **and a half.

Ted Dibiase v. Jinder Mahal-Dibiase has really improved a lot since I saw him last.  He seems to do better as a face here.  He got a USA chant going early but he didn't stay on top for long.  Mahal went on the offensive with a couple neckbreakers, a knee drop, and some heel choking and then went straight after Ted's injured left arm.  Eventually, Mahal went to the top but coming down Ted hit him with a dropkick straight out of a Jushin Liger-Brian Pillman match.  Ted hit a fiery comeback and I was impressed here as he hit stuff like a sit-out spinebuster but he went to the middle rope and Mahal caught him with a knee.  Next, came the camel clutch and the win.  Dibiase needs more time on Smackdown, I'm convinced.  His comeback was great and I'd like to see more of him.  * and a half.

Kofi Kingston v. Dolph Ziggler-This was the main reason I decided to watch Superstars this week and it did not disappoint.  They locked up and immediately Ziggler started strutting around like a peacock and went for the sleeper early but it was countered.  Kofi went for a quick roll-up but Dolph kicked out and shut him down.  They got going running the ropes as Kofi nailed two leapfrogs and Dolph's timing was great.  Later, Dolph was top and hit a rolling neck snap and he mocked Kofi's boom, boom, boom which Vickie liked.  Soon though, Kofi would gain control with a monkey flip out of the corner leading to another Dolph flipping bump that he does so well.  Kofi went for a backslide but Dolph kicked out and nailed a clothesline but quickly Kofi would go for two failed roll-ups.  He then went for a kick but Dolph nailed his own dropkick and he started his sit-ups routine.  Ziggler threw Kofi into the corner, went for a big splash, but Kofi moved.  Looked great and it signaled Kofi's comeback.  He hit the SOS but Ziggler kicked out and then he hit the boom, boom, boom.  Kofi tried for the Trouble In Paradise but Dolph ended up catching him backfirst in mid-air and slamming him face first.  This thing ended up with both men up top fighting as Kofi won out with a headbutt and a punch that sent Dolph down.  Kofi went for a crossbody but he missed and Dolph hit the Namedropper/Rocker Dropper but only got a 2.  He went for the sleeper but missed again and Kofi hit Trouble In Paradise for the finish.  Treamendous stuff here that really picked up towards the end and had great heat.  Track this one down and the whole episode at Youtube.  ****

March 5, 2012 RAW-Creative Has Nothing For You

For a RAW that we knew would have The Rock, HBK, HHH, and Cena on it, this wasn't that great.  The fire from last week's final segment with Cena and Rock wasn't there.  I missed the write-up for last week but I'm here for this show so here goes...

HBK starts out the show and saw HHH accept the match with Taker for WrestleMania two weeks ago.  He came to RAW to find out what made HHH change his mind.  HHH comes out but got interrupted by Shawn as he wanted to show him the clip from RAW two weeks ago where Taker said HBK was better than HHH.  These two acted like subtle enemies and the tension between the two was apparent.  HHH said he wanted to do what HBK couldn't and make him proud.  HBK then announced he would be the guest ref for the match at WM with Taker.  Pretty good segment here, as it should be expected.  Good way to start things off.

Jack Swagger vs. Santino for the US Title is next and this thing was way overbooked.  First, Ace and Otunga come out followed by Teddy, Kofi, and Aksana (who has a great ass, btw).  Did I mention that my wife thinks Swagger looks like the son of Biff Tannin?  Swagger was sporting a BTTF Part 2 Biff 1985 A haircut tonight too.  Remember when Marty went to confront Biff about the almanac and Biff went to shoot him but Marty jumped off the roof of Biff's place onto the Deloreon?  Anyway, that scene was way better than this segment.  Santino did nail the cobra on Dolph who did a 360 bump off the apron.  A lot of other shit happened involving Teddy and Johnny to set up their match at WM but I don't feel like writing it all down as I already wrote enough as is.  Swagger had the ankle lock on Santino but Santino reversed it and hit a roll-up for the win.  Ace tried to reverse it but since Teddy was GM for the night, he kicked Ace out.  I think this was the only time Teddy was even shown or really talked about tonight too.  I just have a feeling Ace will end up as GM for both shows.  Teddy does get a good amount of heat and I hope they don't just forget about him if he loses the GM spot.

The Rock does the first of three history lesson videos from around Boston.  He's on a ship talking about the Boston Tea Party and compares Cena to the British in the American Revolution, which was a common theme for the night.  Rock had a table full of Cena merchandise that he made fun of and threw in the water.  Rocky was on fire with this compared to last week.  He says The Rock Revolution begins tonight.

Alicia Fox vs. Eve-Alicia got jobber intro'd and Kelly was on commentary but was an afterthought except to promote her appearance on the Nick Awards show.  This match felt like a ballet but I guess that's not a surprise or anything.  Eve won with a roll-up in a really quick match but she was spreading her legs towards the hard camera for the finish, which was nice!  Out comes the returning Ryder who says broskis before hoeskis and leaves.  He got a good pop though.

After a commercial, Ryder is walking backstage and Eve catches up to him and makes out with him.  Ryder then smiled like it was his first kiss ever, which made him look like a total geek.  Why can't they just show his net show on RAW or something instead of making him look like a total loser who is completely hopeless in life?

Cena was shown in a video sitting in the empty arena talking about his match with Rocky.  He wants and needs to win at WM as no one will remember second place.  WM 28 is his legacy and this whole segment really put over WM but it won't get the WWE that split reaction they want for WM.  He's still going to get heel heat with stuff like this.

CM Punk/Sheamus vs. Jericho/Daniel Bryan-This was a pretty decent match with a good ride home to the finish.  At one point, Jericho had Punk in a crossface chicken wing, which I liked being a Bob Backlund mark.  Punk hit a hot tag to Sheamus and Sheamus' comeback wasn't amazing and didn't get the reaction you'd want.  Sheamus did end up countering a Jericho bulldog by tossing him into the corner, which looked great.  Sheamus got a second hot tag for Punk, who had a fiery comeback more so than Sheamus.  I'm probably nitpicking here though as Sheamus did look pretty solid out there.  Punk hit a small package on Jericho who reversed it for the clean win.  This was the best match of the show but not really amazing.

Rock history segment 2 is next as he asks what if Cena had been in Paul Revere's spot in the American Revolution.  Rocky said he would have gotten a time machine and went back and kicked Cena's ass and Paul Revere would have been yelling that The Rock was coming.  Pretty good stuff here, especially for the wackiness of The Rock getting a time machine!

The Miz vs. The Big Show-Miz got a proper entrance but I knew he wouldn't last long and I was right.  Cody Rhodes came out and showed a video of Show eating at the WWF restaurant in New York for WM 18.  The Miz then tried to take advantage of this distraction but failed as Show hit a spear and then the WMD on Miz for the finish.  The Miz showed little to nothing in this match, by the way.

Rock history lesson 3 was up and he said Cena will be overthrown at WM just like the British were.  This was not as good as the first two segments.

R-Truth v. Kane-Truth had some wacky promo during his entrance with horrible delivery.  Truth did get some offense in though compared to the last match with The Miz.  He did not win though as Kane hit the chokeslam for the finish.  I know this is old news but Truth is really solid out there.  He bumped like crazy for a snap mare and is always very fiery.  Orton came out, Truth distracted Kane, and Orton hit the RKO and said that it's good to be back.  I still don't give a damn about this program.

Cena comes out to address The Rock and compared him to The Situation from Jersey Shore.  That's because Rock was referencing his wang during one of the history segments.  He talked about how Rock was shook up from last week but that his swagger was back apparently.  Cena did not want Dwayne for WM but he wanted The Rock and he called him out.  Rocky came out and said he saw fear in Cena that Rock was taking everything away.  Some of the fans started chanting for Cena but were drowned out by boos.  Did I mention that RAW was in Boston?  There's no way in hell Cena will get any type of face reaction at WM, no matter what the WWE does.  Rocky says he's never been more confident and that Cena will always be The Rock's bitch and he leaves.  Cena stays and says he's not afraid and that he will make history by beating The Rock at WM.  This was quite uneventful and The Rock just wasn't there for this.  This was probably as bad for The Rock as last week but it wasn't as long.  Cena was still walking the line between heel and face but he was more face and less edgy than last week.  In other words, he was way less cool than The Rock but he is still over, which is all that matters.  I just can't wait until he goes full heel as he's going to be great in that role as evident from his amped-up cockiness these last couple shows.